"I Have notes of Several Similar Cases:” The Case-Structure and Sherlock Holmes

Abstract

The nineteenth century is suffused with methods and terminology that are drawn from
such disciplines as geology, palaeontology, evolutionary biology, etc. As the nature of evidence
was at the heart of these scientific disciplines, by mid-century, evidence per se became their
common preoccupation thereby establishing a continuum among the various disciplines. Such
preoccupations were also specifically shared with a genre that was particularly created around
the act of seeking and interpreting evidence, that of the detective fiction. The methods and
terms characteristic of the various scientific disciplines were also made available to the
fictional detective who investigated in a manner that recalled the models provided by such
disciplines. It was even evident in the narratological reconstructions of the plot by the observer,
namely, the detective, and its representation to the reader in the form of case structures